AutolycusRoman Integrity
by Harthos
Summary: Highlander fic about an Immortal who, in the Hercules & Xena series, was known as Autolycus. When he returns to Greece after being gone for a couple centuries, Rome has taken over and he soon meets wise Roman Immortal Marcus Constantine
1. 1: It's not ALL Greek to me

Autolycus

The name's Anthony, Anthony Stiles. At least, that's what I am known as now. At one time however, very long ago, I was known as Autolycus, The King of Thieves. This is my story.

Most people wouldn't believe me about this, but I really did in fact, know Hercules and Xena, personally. Some of the things you may hear about them are of course, exaggeration, and some, just straight up malarkey. But that's not the point right now. No, what I wanted to tell you was my story after my dealings with Xena and Hercules, particularly how I became the way am today. Now given, the Big Guy did have quite a positive influence on my life, don't get me wrong, as did Xena several years later, but there was one man that really changed me, made me want to live for something better.

I'll start by bringing you up to speed with when some of the things that happened with Hercules and Xena, so I can tell you about why I left Greece, why I came back, and what was basically going on after I got back. Ok, so I may not really have the dates absolutely spot on, but hey, after 3,000 years, who's really counting? I guess it was about 800 BC, maybe a little after, that I first met Hercules. It wasn't until nearly 500 years later however, that I met Xena. By that time, I had become a bit of a myth myself, heheh; "the legendary King of Thieves," who had been "popping up periodically over hundreds of years." Hercules was still around, somehow-to this day, I don't really know WHAT he was, but he definitely wasn't one of us-in fact, he may still be around today, who knows. You see, I was never with the both of them together, so they never caught on to me for what I really was. Hahah, Xena must of thought I was some kinda "copy cat" criminal POSING as "the legendary Autolycus." Ok, sorry, I got side-tracked. Well anyway, after about 15 more years, I left Greece, I was getting tired of just running around as a thief, and besides; the damn Romans had started trying to take over everything. I figured, "Hey, I'll come back in about a century or two, this 'Roman Empire nonsense' will surely be finished by then"

Ha! Boy was I Wrong! So I headed South, across the ocean to the land of the burning sands. I must have died several times out there in the desert just from thirst and overexposure to the sun. For several years, I traveled through the desert, to many various places. After several decades, I reached Egypt, where I worked as a thief for several years. I left there, and continued following the Nile southward until I reached the Jungles. Then, I started seeking out big treasures hidden in the Jungle. What I mainly found, was many new and colorful ways to die. Well, after spending over a hundred years in the jungle, I went back up to the savannah and spent many years with several wondering tribes. I finally decided to head back up to Greece to see what was going on there. Only this time, I took the long way, AROUND the sea. Well, by the time I returned to Greece, it had been nearly three hundred years, and let me tell you, the whole Roman thing had NOT blown over like I had hoped it would. In fact, they had now completely taken over all of Greece. So, I returned to what I'd always done best: sneaking around as a thief. Only now, it was much harder, and much more interesting, what with all the Roman guards snooping around.

Well, one day, I got really bored, and when I saw a military caravan traveling down a road in Macedonia, I decided to try and rob them. Well, it just so happened, that as I got closer to them, there was that feeling again, one of them was an Immortal. _Good thing I started carrying a sword with me, _I thought. (I had learned That lesson the hard way back in Africa-again, long story.) Well. I cautiously approached the group, my hand on my sword. I found a rock, near the road, several yards ahead of the line. I studied the group; they had one lead man, who thankfully, was NOT the Immortal, which meant I still MIGHT be able to use stealth to my advantage. On the sides, there were two men on each side, on in front, and one in back. One of these, the right, front man, was the Immortal, I would have to "kill" him first. I jumped out from behind the rock, and slashed at the Immortal, he was much better than I had hoped he was. I might could have bested him alone, but his friends immediately jumped in, and before I knew it, I was slashed and stabbed through.

The next thing I remember, is waking up with some water being poured out of a leather pouch right onto my face. We were sitting next to a small creek, by the way.

cough hack "Huh, what'd you do that for!?", I said, looking around. It was then that I realized what had happened, and where I was. "Oh," I said. "Okay, the whole-"this isn't a spectator sport" thing, so you pulled me out here away from the group to fight me. Well, that's just fine with me, let's get it on then, heh-Hey, where'd my sword go?"

"With my men," he replied, matter-of-factly.

"Oh, that's just great. So, you're just gonna slay me then. Real smooth, tough guy!"

"I don't want to kill you, yet. I figure someone that is 'bold' enough to try to attack a group of armed Roman soldiers, one of which is an Immortal, is either someone very special, or a complete fool."

"uh heheheh!" I was grinning now. "You don't even know who I am, do you? I don't even know how old you are bub, but if you knew anything about our culture, you probably would have heard of Autolycus, King of Thieves."

He reserved a slight smile "I'm sorry, can't say I've heard of you."

"Well," I replied, "I know you 've heard of Xena, the Warrior Princess"-I wasn't even About to bring Herc into this and start That little debate. "Well, I knew her personally. In fact, she called on me several times to steal for her."

"Hmm, so, the cocky thief that was mentioned in the Xena scrolls. Well, Autolycus, I am Marcus Constantine, at your service. So it is true. I often wondered whether you were one of us."

"You better believe it, buddy. Over eight centuries, now"

"So, have you been a thief most of your life"

"Well, yeah, pretty much, as if it's any of your business"

"Well, my pardons, but I my, myself was fortunate enough not to ever need to steal, so I was just wondering what it must be like for you."

I actually still don't know why, to this day, but somehow I felt intrigued to talk with this man, even as he was intrigued by me.

"Well, first off," I said, rising to my feet, "I'm getting tired of sitting around this little place. So, now that I have all my body parts back in place, why don't we go for a walk, besides, I'm hungry. Oh, by the way," I said, now remembering his situation. "I'm sorry, but what about you and your company?"

"Ah, well fortunately, I have become rather well acquainted with General Parthius; I am considered his favorite. He already considers me a very honorable man, and I told the other men in my company that I had gone to bury you."

"Heheh," I smiled, 'always a classic."

"Besides," he replied, "As a matter of fact, I am actually moving up the ranks too far, it will soon be time for me to die to the world," he said, a slight air of disappointment in his tone.

So, as we walked upstream, I began to tell him peaces of my early story, how I had grown up living off the streets, how I had even tried getting a job, but it just didn't work. I told him that later, I had been taken in by another thief, who was the leader of a group of thieves which I soon became a part of. It was not long after, that I was killed by a man who's house I tried to rob, and learned that like my new friend, there was something special about me.

'Yeah, I was soon moving up the ranks," I continued to tell Marcus, "and my new friend," (Elpis, was his name) "didn't like that, so he tried to take my head, and thus, I received my first Quickening. Yeah, I could have taken over as the new leader of the group, but instead, I went off on my own, now that I knew what I was. Using my new found speed and the combination of mine and Flavion's thieving skills, I soon became the greatest thief in all of Greece. But then you Romans showed up-oh sorry, but I mean, Really! So I got tired of it all and went south to explore Africa for a couple hundred years, and now, here I am.

So what about you? What's your story, soldier?"

"Well, as I said, I was born of a rather wealthy father. He loved our family very much, and from a young age, I learned to respect him as a man of Rome, and as a soldier. One day, he went off on a campaign, and did not return. My mother and I were both devastated. Later on, when I was a little older, I myself enlisted in the army. I was doing rather well for several years, moving up the ranks; my commanding officer, Gallus Lucia, was even planning to promote me to general he had said. Then one day, it happened. This was a day I will long remember. Before we had gone out into battle that day, he had given us some very insightful words, reminding us that what we fought for was not just the glory of Rome, or even for the favor of the gods, but for the lands and its people. He said that upholding Rome was for the good of all. The Roman Republic grants rights and privileges to its citizens which no one else can provide them. "So just remember,' he had said, 'when you fight, you fight not just for your country, or to earn money for your families, but you fight for the good of everyone.'

"Later that day, me, and a group of my friends were held down in a small gully in the woods. We were cornered, and we knew it. We had to make a choice now; we could either surrender, and possibly be spared, or we could go down fighting. We knew that after they got past us, it would only be a matter of minutes before they closed in on our leader, giving his regiment no time to hold up for reinforcements. I must admit I was scared. I was not prepared to die, but those words rang true in my mind. Then, I took charge and led the troops ahead. We fought with all of our hearts, taking down as many of their men as we could, knowing we would die, but hoping they we just might be able to buy our comrades enough time for reinforcements to arrive.

"The next thing I remembered was waking up wondering what had happened to me. I was fortunate, for normally they would have burned all the bodies of dead soldiers. I had no idea why I had come back from the dead. All I could think was that must use my second chance to fulfill what Gallus Lucia had said, and fight for Rome for the benefit of all. A short time later, I met my first Immortal Teacher, Flavius Sulla, who taught me what I was. Eventually, I got back into the military and have been here ever since. So you see, Autolycus, I am not saying that you must join the army and fight for Rome, or even that you should believe in Rome, for surely you must have every reason to be against our country. No, what I am saying, is simply that you should have Something in your life to live for, to fight for. My many years of Immortal life have taught me that that is one of the main things that keep us going, and I think one of the very reasons for our Immortality, to have a purpose to life."

I am not even sure why, considering how I was at that time, but something about his little story and all he had said, struck me as meaningful. Still, I was a tough egg to crack, and I didn't want to give just yet.

"Yeah, well I got a purpose, buddy. I search through out the world for treasure, and sometimes the other kinda booty, if you know what I mean, heheh."

_Geeze, that sounded Soo Pathetic! Even I didn't believe me! _

"But, I tell you what, pal, when we get to the next town, wherever that is, we'll have a couple of drinks, and we can exchange some more life stories, eh?"

"Well, I wish I could, but I must get back to my group. However, like I said, I am overstaying my mortal welcome; I must die soon, anyway. The small town Griteeze is about 20 miles upstream. If you will wait for me, I will meet you there in two weeks and buy those drinks myself."

"Wait," I started, surprised, "you want me to just wait there for you to come back, two weeks from now!?"

"The choice is yours, but I would like to talk with you more. It maybe less, maybe a little bit more."

"Whatever," I said with a sigh, turning my head.

"Farewell, Autolycus," he said as we began in our separate ways, "I look forward to, and hope for another meeting with you soon."

"


	2. 2Waiting is the Hardest Part

I walked away from him, continuing on for the rest of the day, and long into the night before sleeping. It took me until the evening the next night to reach the town, small, but busy, Greek-looking town. It was a nice town, aesthetically, I guess, there was a small waterfall at the far end of the town, where the land got rockier and hillier. I found the first person I saw there, and asked where I could get a decent meal, and a drink. I went to the local inn, and got me a drink. _I'll just leave this place tomorrow, _I thought, _there's not much here for me. Doesn't even seem to be anyone worth robbing. _ But after a short time, for some reason I wasn't sure of, I made a decision to stay. I still, to this day, all these centuries later, do not know why I was giving this man's words so much thought. What would I DO with my self for two weeks? That night, I got my self a nice, full meal, and then I went outside the town to go to sleep, ( I STILL felt more comfortable sleeping by myself on the ground outside.)

The next morning, I went back into the town, trying to think over what Constantine had said. "Make something of your life." What in Tartarus that meant, I had no Idea, but some strange part of me wanted to try to find out. I looked around me, seeing people walking around, back and forth, selling things, trading, mending houses, making clothes-_HOW DULL!-_ I thought. Sure, these people were living, but this seemed a rather boring life to me. One of the things that I had loved about being a thief was the sense of adventure that it offered, the rush of being chased after and the satisfaction of barely getting away. The things these people were doing seemed very dull and boring, especially for someone who knew he was going to live for several thousand years.

Sure, I HAD tried "Honest work" in the past a few times, like the time I got a job working in a coal mine around the time I knew Xena, but that got old pretty fast, sure it was dangerous, (not really, for an Immortal) but there was no action-(especially not the kind of Action I liked, heheh) Then there was my job as an assassin that I had down in the desert kingdom of Al-cet-Drula, in North Africa. Now that was my kinda job: action, adventure, heck, that time I had even met a beautiful maiden who I was in love with. But the problem was that, as an Immortal, I could only keep that particular job for a couple decades, before having to move on. The trouble seemed to be trying to continue doing the same thing for lifetimes on end. Or maybe I could become religious-yeah, I'd seen how well that turned out. If there was one thing the Herc had taught me, it was that going around in a religion for a bunch of hokey gods, (which, by the way, I never Had believed in), was totally pointless and stupid. Heh, I could join the military like Marcus. RIiiight. No Thanks! I don't really like the idea of facing off against an army of mortals who would just as easily chop your head off as any Immortal you might face. I decided to put aside this contemplating for now.

On the third day, I took my small sword and went out to the field to practice; I figured I could at least keep up on that for awhile. I had gone up on a clear hill, far from the town on the side opposite where I had come in. I could easily see the town from here off in the distance, but I was far enough away that it would be hard for anyone to notice me out there.

The sword I was using at this time was one that I had picked up in Egypt. It wasn't quite as light as the sword I carried back in Greece, which was one of the things I had always valued in sword, quickness, and portability, but it was a much stronger, and a lot better balanced, and I figured I would try something different, anyway. I went through my exercises throughout the day, trying to let my mind get caught up in the motions, leaving the other thoughts from the past several years, behind me.

Around dusk, while I was resting beneath an olive tree, getting ready to go back in, I noticed something suspicious going on down near the village. As I got closer, I saw that an old man, apparently a merchant, was being attacked by a group of bandits. This was nothing extremely out of the ordinary, normally, I might actually help them, or sometimes, I would just take out the victim AND his attackers, and take all the loot for myself. This time however, I had a different, crazy idea: help the guy out. Yeah, I know, heck, maybe I can just chalk it up to too much time in the desert sun in Egypt. I could do it, maybe it was a good thing; after all, the big guy did it all the time, why not give it a shot. So, I ran down the hill and charged into the fray. After a few minutes, it was dark, and I had taken out all of the bandits. I went and gave the victim, and old man, apparently in his late 50s or 60s, a hand up.

"Oh, thank you, kind sir," he said "I thought that those men would kill me! I don't know who you are, and is too dark now to really see your face, but I would very much like to repay you." With that, he got out a couple of golden coins and offered them to me.

"Oh, I-I, w' well, alright sir, if you insist." I said, taking the coins. "Just don't tell anyone I did this; believe me, I don't do it all the time." (I really didn't want to get a reputation started.)

"Very well sir," he said with a big smile, "I will keep it between the two of us. Again, I thank you, and bid you farewell."

A few gold coins. Just enough to pay for food for a couple more days, I was, after all, running a little low on money and was beginning to worry that I might have to start stealing again or worse, hunting if I wanted to have enough to last me until Marcus Got back. Well, I thought, maybe this 'doing good' thing Did pay, after all. And what was this… this, feeling? It felt kinda, good.. in a, strange way. It was similar to the feeling I had gotten when I helped Xena and Gabriel and the rest of those people when we got trapped under the ocean in that capsized ship.

The next day, I found myself being helpful once again, as I assisted a blacksmith with his roof in exchange for sharpening my sword, and paying me one gold coin. If I had to be cooped up in this little town for two weeks and would not be able to rob someone blind and run away, then I would at Least make sure I left there richer than when I came. So, for the next several days, I took up little jobs, helping people where I could, and earning as much money as possible from them. After a few days, I had started to kind of like the people of this town. One day, a group of Roman soldiers came to the town. There were about 50 or 60 of them, as I recall. The leader, a large man with black facial hair and a deep voice, stepped forward.

"By order of Caesar, this town now belongs to Rome! We will be bringing our troops into town in only a few days. You will give up your homes to us while are in this region, and you all will sleep on the streets if necessary!"

At this, I just had to speak up, I hadn't liked the Romans from the start, but this was just plain going way too far!

"Look pal," I said, "You just go back to your Caesar and tell him he can just toss his salad for all I care, but what you ask is ridiculous! Look at these people, some of their families have little children, you can't just come and kick them out of their homes like this!"

"You fool, I speak for Rome! And if you defy me, I shall have you executed here on spot!."

Then, to my surprise, one of the townsfolk stepped forward. "Hey, hold it right there! Why do you not execute me, too!" Then another, and another, until a very large number of the townsfolk were standing up with me, and to my surprise, many of them actually wielded swords.

"Very well, then!" Kill them all!"

Ya know that little voice inside your head that tells you when you've gone too far? Well, if mine could have been personified, it would have been smacking me over the head, saying: 'Way to go, Idiot! Look what you've done, now!!'

And so the fight began. Fortunately, we greatly out numbered the Romans, at least five to one. UNfortunately, the Romans were WAAY better fighters than any of these people, and apparently too good for me, for I went down well before the fight was over. When I awoke, several dozen people lay around me on the ground, dead. It gets worse, too; as I looked around, I saw the people stepping back, awestruck, many of them beginning to bow down. I heard many of them begin to chant:

"Hail Ares! Hail Ares!"

(Oh, Great!) I thought

"No, No! Look, I"-I stopped myself, realizing that maybe I SHOULD let them run with this, considering that the alternative would probably mean being beaten and run out of town, as a demon or whatever. At this point, the voice in my head remained totally silent, obviously too ashamed to even speak to me.

"Look," I started back, in my best, Ares, god-like voice, "Do not grovel like that at my feet! Ares does not like it when mortals act so pathetic! By the way, what happened to the Roman soldiers who were here, are they all dead?"

One of the townsfolk spoke up, nervously: "All, e, except those, who ran as soon as they saw you begin reviving from the dead, my lord," he said, indicating three soldiers who could be seen running away far in the distance. Do Not erect a statue for me, I wish only to be left alone! In a matter of a few days, my brother, Hermes will be coming here to meet me, so that I can get him to show me some choice vacation spots. Until that time, go on with your lives as you did before, and treat me no different than you had before… UNDERSTAND!!" With that last word, I jammed my sword into the ground, hard.

So, from that point, everyone more or less went about their business, though they continued to give me suspicious looks as they walked by me. I stayed away from the inn and many of the other buildings, mainly only going back into the town once a day to check for "Hermes", wondering where the Hasmana he could be. I knew it was only a matter of time before these people became totally suspicious and started asking me to perform some godly signs, or wanting to know where this "Hermes" was. I was starting think he might not show up, myself when one day, I felt the feeling of another Immortal nearby. I turned to see Marcus Constantine, no longer in his Roman garb and armor.

"Hermes!" I said out loud enough for everyone to hear.

He looked at me, puzzled, "What!?"

I leaned in closer and lowered my voice. "Just play along, ok-TRUST me"

He gave me a harsh, 'what in Hades did you do' look. "OK, look pal, I am leaving this town, now. If you want to finish our little chats, then come with me and buy me that drink at the next town, if not…. See you at the Gathering!"


	3. 3: A Day in the Life

We ran for hours, as long as our Immortal legs would carry us. Then, we stopped for breath, and after a moment, Marcus smacked me over the head, friendly but hard.

"What, did you do!?" He asked, still gasping for breath.

"Well," I started, "Let's just say…I tried, to take your advice…"

He looked at me questioningly,

"Look, some Romans came… they, they tried to take over…. And I, I tried to stop them. Then, some of the villagers had the bright idea, to help me. Well, I died," I said rolling my eyes at myself, "and when I came back, they all started worshipping me like I was Aeris."

"So then, you told them I was Hermes? Hahahahah!! Well, at least you Did try…? Well come on, let's go on to Thessalonica," he said, shaking his head with a smile, "at the rate we've been going, we should be able to get there in less than three days.

Thessalonica was a much larger, busier city. "This is one of the largest Roman cities in the area," he explained to me, "here, many of the ships from Troy and all the way across to Egypt, come to trade with the local merchants."

"Now," I said, sarcastically changing the subject, "about that drink"

"Yes," he replied with a smile, "I know just the place." He took me to a very dirty, run down part of town,

"My kind of place," I told him, "But doesn't seem like the kind of place for a Roman Soldier."

"Well," he replied, " I am no longer a Roman soldier now, I died a few days ago," he said, smiling. "Oh yeah," I said.

He took me a to a little tavern in an ally which, despite it's rough exterior, was actually a swell joint. Here in this Roman town, I tried some drinks like I had never even tasted in all my 8 centuries.

"You see, these are the types of places where I spend much of my time 'between lifetimes', as it were," said Constantine a little later in the night. "Here I am safe from being recognized by anyone who might know me from the military. And here," he said raising his glass, "I can let go a bit more, less than I could otherwise. I suppose one of the advantages of being a thief, is never having to deal with such things, hm?"

"Yeah, it does have it's advantages. Being able to go where you want, you can bath in the nude in whatever river you want, you don't have to be tied to any one woman, or certain group of friends. Then again," I said with a sigh, "that can get lonely sometimes but hey, as an Immortal, what can ya do?"

"So, tell about some of your times down in Africa, I have only been there a few times, but only on short trips to the Northern most part. I would like to see Egypt some day."

So, I started telling him a little bit about my travels in Africa, about the time I had spent in Egypt myself. Before either of us realized it, it was getting late. "Well, I think I have had enough to drink," said Marcus, who had drunk considerably less than me, but was clearly getting somewhat drunk, himself. "I know of a rather good place to get rooms for the night."

"No thanks, I prefer to sleep outside the city on the ground."

"Trust me," he said, "If you do that in a city this large, especially a Roman city, you may end up getting arrested, mugged, or worse."

So, we went and got a couple of rooms in a nearby inn. I didn't sleep well, because I wasn't used to sleeping in a bed. The next day, I remember waking up to someone knocking on my door.

"Yeah, yeah, I said, dragging myself out of bed. I opened the door with my shirt still off.

"Marcus, what time is it, anyway?"

"Nearly noon. I was going down to the local bathes; I wanted to know if you wanted to come?"

"What !? What the heck are you asking, Marcus!? First of all, when I DO bathe, which isn't often, I do it in the rivers out in the wilderness."

"No, well there is also a gymnasium there, where you can work out and there are often some very attractive women there. One of the reasons I wanted you to go however, was just to see the baths, since they are one of Rome's finest facilities."

"Ah, fine!" –i Honestly, he had me at 'bathing women' /i I put my clothes back on, and we headed through town to the baths. The facility itself was a large building with a set of stairs leading up the front. We went in, and I could smell the scent of oil and incense all around. He gave me a brief tour of the facilities. As he showed me the study, he said:

"I would like to teach you to speak and read our Latin, if you will allow me."

"With all DUE respect, Constantine, why would I want to learn Latin? I am doing just fine with Greek, thank you."

"Yes but, like it or not, the influence of Rome is growing, and if you learn to speak our language, you will be able to live better among its citizens."

"Yeah, I guess you are right," I said, realizing that he was right, unfortunately, "But don't expect me to be using it for the betterment of Rome, or whatever.

And I also wouldn't mind if you taught me some of that Roman sword play, too."

"Agreed. And you can teach me what you may know about Egyptian fighting techniques."

"First though, let's get something to eat, I'm starving!"

"Another thing the baths are good for. Come"

"Great, and after lunch, you can start teaching me about your… stupid language," I said, rolling my eyes.

We then ate yet another great meal, and then returned to the study to start learning Latin. After a few hours, I decided it was time for some fencing.

"Alright, I think that's about all I can take for today, what do you say to a friendly sword match?"

("Very well, let's go to the gymnasium. Follow me,") he said, in Latin.

"Ok, you aren't gonna be speaking Latin all day now, are you?"

"Heheh, nah, just wanted to make sure you were paying attention."

Then he lead me across the main bath room into a large adjoining room on the other side where several others were already sword fighting, as well as practicing many other athletic activities, like wrestling, and even weightlifting. I took out my Egyptian sword, and he his large Roman Gladius.

As we started, I told him, "I don't know how much I can teach you about swordplay, I don't practice very often, usually only when I have to. And as for Egyptian techniques well, I was with a tribe of thieves the whole time I was there, so I didn't get to learn much of the real techniques they used."

"Fair enough," he said, striking back at me. "Well, admittedly, grunt, the last time we fought, it wasn't one on one, so I am interested to see how we do against, each other."

"YouJustWorryAboutKeepingYourHead!" I said, the words coming with each strike. It was a friendly, sarcastic gesture.

He then managed to slip past my guard, sticking the blade of his sword up against my neck. "Well, it WOULD be a shame to destroy the baths," he said, lowering his sword.

"Heheh, just tell them you were being punished, or blessed, by Zeus," I said with a grin

"You mean Jupiter," said Constantine, returning the smile

"Oh yeah, that's right, you Romans just ripped off the Greek gods and tacked your own phony names on them, how original!" I said, rolling my eyes sarcastically. "Well, whatever, not that I believe in any of them anyway."

"Me neither. Again?" he said, resetting himself.

"Sure."

"But what do you think of the gods? I mean, they seem to be so important to most mortals."

"Yeah, I think that's because they don't have enough self esteem on their own. Then again, even Xena said that she USED to worship Ares before she became good."

"Tell me, what was she like?" he asked, curiously

"Hohoh! Well, let's just say she had the Perfect body, ok? And I'm not just talking hot; believe it or not, I saw her jump eight feet up in the air. She wasn't Immortal, but she sure did fight like one of us. I never did face her, but if I had, she probably could have taken my head. And man could she run. That was another thing; she was almost as fast as us, too. Ah, what a woman, too bad for her, though. Wasn't there, but I heard she was killed in some kind of battle."

"Yes, according to the Xena scrolls, I read that she went on a voyage to the Far East to avenge a wrong she had committed earlier in her life, but then she never returned. Now, as for her young friend, uh.. what was it?"

"Gabriel!" I said, countering with my sword, "Heheheh, now there was one hot little number, too.."

At that point, I couldn't help but recall the time I got a strange, pleasant surprise down in Al-cet-Drula, when I was down there working as an assassin for the sultan, but that's a whole 'nother story.

"Yeah, she probably just killed herself or something," I lied, "after she brought the Xena Scrolls back to Greece."

"Indeed. So, back to the gods. Do think it's possible that a few of them might have been Immortals, mistaken for something more?"

"Hmm, it is a possibility. Would explain Zeus's lightning. Maybe some idiot Immortals where fighting too close to onlookers and someone saw the Quickening."

Right at that moment, as I was thinking too hard and not paying attention, he got me again, his sword tip right at my heart.

"Damn it! I really AM getting rusty, to let a newcomer like you beat me twice!"

"Well, I HAVE had a lot of experience lately, having been in the military."

"See, I haven't even fought another Immortal since I was in Central Africa."

"Care to try the baths?" he asked, putting on his shirt."

"Sure, why not."

Marcus bought us a locker in which to store our clothes and other belongings. Heheh, I still had not revealed to him about all of the money I earned off the townspeople back in Griteeze, and I was still letting him pay for everything. After we had removed our clothes, Marcus told me we had to scrape off our bodies with a metal tool, before we could enter the baths. "What!?" I said,

"Yes," he explained, "if not, we will get all our bodily oils in the water."

I had heard of the Greek athletes doing it, but had never tried it; I always thought it was a very strange custom. "Well," I sighed, "when in Rome.."

As I said before, I was used to bathing alone, out in the wilderness, so this was just a little bit awkward for me. There were several different pools, divided by walls just low enough that a thin layer of water could run over them. The walls had stairs on either side to allow people to walk over them to the next pool. Each pool was a different temperature. The first one we entered was the warm one, and then we moved on to the lukewarm one, and then the cold one, which was more for athletic swimming than for bathing. This was more like the temperature of the rivers and ponds I was used to cleaning myself in. So, I stayed there awhile, but then moved back to the warm pool which Marcus seemed to prefer.

"This is pretty nice, Marcus"

"Indeed. You see, Rome isn't all bad. Before the Romans came, the people of this region knew nothing of such privileges. Huhuhuh, after you learn a little more Latin, I may start teaching you about Roman polotics."

At that, I just raised an eyebrow and shot him a concerned look, to which he simply grinned.

"Look," I said, eyeing a couple of dark-haired Roman girls over in a corner of the pool, "I'll meet you back at the tavern tomorrow night."

"I will see you then."

So, I went over to the two Roman girls and began laying on the old Autolycus charm.

"Hello, ladies. Name's Autolycus, I said, trying to practice a little of my newly learned Latin. "With such beautiful hair in smooth skin, you definitely must be Roman."

"Yes," spoke the older looking, slightly taller lady, "I am Marina, and this is my younger sister, Silvia." What about you, sir? You don't seem like you are Roman at all. A Greek, I presume?"

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you both. And yes, Marina, as a matter of fact, I am Greek, I travel around all over. Keeps things interesting that way. What about you lovely ladies, you live around here?

"Yes, we live in a Domah with our father, Pontius Maximus."

"hmm, ya don't say? He must be rather wealthy, he in the military?"

"Yes, but he is gone for summer."

"Ya Don't Say..?" I said, with a grin.

Well, I don't guess I have to tell you what happened next, heheh. I will be honest, t had actually been over over a years since I had gotten some. I had slept with a girl at an inn right after returning from Africa, but otherwise I spent most of my days evading the Romans. Sigh nothing like a threesome with two Roman sisters in the garden of a Domah..

Ok, moving right along with the story, here. The next night, I awoke mid afternoon. And, after having some dinner with my own money for a change, I finally went down to the bar to meet Constantine.

"Have fun?" he asked. We shared a few drinks, and he told me some more Roman war stories, but generally, nothing much to tell here.

The a few days later at the library, however, something rather interesting did happen. You see, he had explained to me that normally, he would not be going to the library after having "died", so recently, but he said he was taking a chance for the sake of teaching me Latin. Well, it turned out he was right, one of the military leaders recognized him as a soldier. As he came over to us Marcus quickly said:

"Quick! You'll have to cover for me. Act like I am your slave."

"What!?" I whispered.

"Marcus!?" Said the man, shocked.

"Autolycus!" I quickly broke in. "At your service. I was just teaching my slave here how to uh, read."

"What!?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know what your thinking, 'first you start teaching them to read, and then next thing you know, they'll be wanting take part in the rules. Don't worry, though, Joxer here can not speak, and he is also um…" I wanted to say, unic but didn't know the word for it, so I used gestures and tried to explain. "uic?" he offered.

"yes, he is a unik, so I really don't have to worry about any of that from him. The only reason I am teaching him to read, is so that he can take care of my uh, papers when I am gone. Ah, what was your name again?"

"Farinous," he replied. Forgive me, I uh, it's just that your slave there looked Soo much like someone I used to know. Well, it was nice to meet you, Autolycus, Good day, sir."

"Well, that was close."

"Yes, Autolycus, but did you Have to say That!?"

To which I simply shrugged.

"So, what's next," changing the subject, "you going to teach me how to Sing in Latin?"

"Actually," he replied with a smile, "I think you will rather enjoy this next lesson."

Heheh, we then started going over the Roman versions of many of the Greek myths, now rewritten in Latin. This, I found very amusing, since I actually knew many of those stories first hand.

After several weeks, I had become almost fluent in Latin, and Marcus began teaching me about the Roman government.

"Wait, so you're telling me that here in Rome, the power of law making is divided among all the people of the nation, and not just from the one ruler in power!?" I asked, puzzled, but becoming more and more intrigued by this new form of government.

"Yes, in fact, there is no one ruler at the head of power. There are actually two rulers, called consuls, who are elected to office by Roman citizens. These, along with six other offices, make up the executive branch of the government, all of which, like the consuls, contain two members, so that no one man may ever have total power. Aside from the executive branch, we then have the legislative branch, which is made up of assemblies of citizens."

"Now, you keep saying citizens. How does one get the right to be called a citizen? I mean, not that I, myself would ever want to be that much a part of Rome. You know I still hate you guys for raining in on my big fat Greek party. But, just out of curiosity..?"

"Well, the first way, is of course to be born into citizenship, which rather rules out Immortals, doesn't it?" He said with a smile "That is, I WAS BORN a citizen in my first life, but.. you know. Another way, is that a freed slave, will be granted almost full citizenship, and any children he has, will be granted true full citizenship. A third way, the route I always take, is by doing service in the Roman military." I wasn't about to join the Roman army, let me tell you. "Still another way, is that it is possible, with the right connections, to buy citizenship with money, though the price is unbelievably high."

So from then on, I began to become more and more interested in Roman democracy, where the rules were determined by the people and not one ruler. Even when the republic fell to Roman imperialism, I still tried to do my part, to see if there might be any meaning in my life pertaining to what Marcus had said about having a purpose.

At one point, I even did earn enough money to obtain citizenship for time. Ok, fine, so I didn't actually earn the money, I stole most of it, but hey it's me, what do you want? Very soon, however, the Christians came along, and since the Romans were so Hell spent, i pardon the pun /i, on their own religion of the gods, that things got rather complicated to say the least. There was a man you may have heard of, named Charlamagne who tried to revive the old Roman way of life, during the middle ages, but he didn't get very close to it, unfortunately.

That is why I have taken such a liking to these people here in America, not just because of the whole democracy thing, though that is all well and good, but also because I was there from the start. I came over here back in 1584, mainly out of sheer curiosity, after having heard extensively from a friend of mine about this New World. I was there as we struggled to survive the cold, harsh winters with rugged housing and minimal food. I was there when British officers gunned down several Boston colonists. I helped throw the tea into the Boson harbor when we got fed up at paying pointless taxes. . I admired how these Americans signed their freedom out even BEFORE they won the war.

So now, here I am, 1812, ready to go to war for America Again, against the same bloody British as before. I have now returned to United States, having changed my name to Anthony, and am ready to leave for Washington in just three days. Hopefully, we will win this war as well, and will finally Truly be at peace with the British.


End file.
